GERBAM — Deuxième Colloque International de Bactériologie marine — CNRS, Brest, 1-5 octobre 1984
IFREMER, Actes de Colloques, 3, 1986, pp. 633-638
77
TAXONOMY AND DISTRIBUTION OF HYDROCARBONONCLASTIC BACTERIA FORM THE IXTOC-I AREA.
M.L. LIZARRAGA-PARTIDA, J. MUNOZ-RUBIO, J. PORRAS-AGUIRRE, F.B.
IZQUIERDO-VICUNA, I. WONG CHANG
Insituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnolgia, Universidad National Autonoma de Mexico.
Ciudad universitaria, MEXICO 04510, D.F. (MEXICO)
RÉSUMÉ - L’impact des activités pétrolières a été mesuré grâce à une étude systématique de la structure des
populations hétérotrophes dégradant le pétrole. L’indice bactéries dégradant le pétrole - bactéries hétérotrophes
(saprophytes) a été employé pour suivre quantitativement l’évolution dans le temps de ces populations. Des
méthodes de taxonomie numérique ont été appliquées afin de constituer des écotypes bactériens des
souches capables de dégrader le pétrole en mer.
Mots clés: bactéries dégradant le pétrole, contamination par le pétrole, golfe du Mexique, bactéries marines.
ABSTRACT - A bacteriological monitoring program has been established in order to evaluate the impact of oil
activities. The ratio of heterotrophic-hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria was used to follow the evolution in time of
both populations. Numerical taxonomic methods were employed in order to define ecotypes of marine oil
degraders.
Key words : oil pollution, oil degrader, hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria, Gulf of Mexico, marine bacteria.
INTRODUCTION
The ixtoc oil field is located in the southern Gulf of Mexico, off-shore of “Laguna de
Términos” and the Grijalva-Usumacinta river system. Thus, the area is influenced by river
input as well as by ocean waters coming from the Caribbean and the Loop currents. These
influences are reflected in the physical, chemical, geological and biological characteristics
of the area.
The seasonal influence of ocean and river waters, make this area a dynamic boundary
with different geological and biological factors such as the deltaic and carbonated
sedimentological provinces (Lynch, 1954), and the benthic fauna (Soto, 1979, YanezArancibia and Sànchez-Gil, 1983).
The Campeche bank in the southern Gulf of Mexico, is responsible for more than half of
Mexico’s oil production and a third of the shrimp catches in Mexican waters. Therefore
since the onset of this decade (Botello and Castro, 1980) a multidisciplinary monitoring
program has been established on the continental shelf of the Campeche Bank.
This work is a study of the annual and seasonal changes in the bacteria community. It was
carried out using the concentrations of heterotrophic and oil degrading bacteria in the
water and in the sediment habitats. In additions, oil degrading bacteria, which were
isolated in March 1980, are characterized using numerical taxonomic methods.
633
IFREMER, Actes de Colloques, 3, 1986, pp. 633-638
77
TAXONOMY AND DISTRIBUTION OF HYDROCARBONONCLASTIC BACTERIA FORM THE IXTOC-I AREA.
M.L. LIZARRAGA-PARTIDA, J. MUNOZ-RUBIO, J. PORRAS-AGUIRRE, F.B.
IZQUIERDO-VICUNA, I. WONG CHANG
Insituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnolgia, Universidad National Autonoma de Mexico.
Ciudad universitaria, MEXICO 04510, D.F. (MEXICO)
RÉSUMÉ - L’impact des activités pétrolières a été mesuré grâce à une étude systématique de la structure des
populations hétérotrophes dégradant le pétrole. L’indice bactéries dégradant le pétrole - bactéries hétérotrophes
(saprophytes) a été employé pour suivre quantitativement l’évolution dans le temps de ces populations. Des
méthodes de taxonomie numérique ont été appliquées afin de constituer des écotypes bactériens des
souches capables de dégrader le pétrole en mer.
Mots clés: bactéries dégradant le pétrole, contamination par le pétrole, golfe du Mexique, bactéries marines.
ABSTRACT - A bacteriological monitoring program has been established in order to evaluate the impact of oil
activities. The ratio of heterotrophic-hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria was used to follow the evolution in time of
both populations. Numerical taxonomic methods were employed in order to define ecotypes of marine oil
degraders.
Key words : oil pollution, oil degrader, hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria, Gulf of Mexico, marine bacteria.
INTRODUCTION
The ixtoc oil field is located in the southern Gulf of Mexico, off-shore of “Laguna de
Términos” and the Grijalva-Usumacinta river system. Thus, the area is influenced by river
input as well as by ocean waters coming from the Caribbean and the Loop currents. These
influences are reflected in the physical, chemical, geological and biological characteristics
of the area.
The seasonal influence of ocean and river waters, make this area a dynamic boundary
with different geological and biological factors such as the deltaic and carbonated
sedimentological provinces (Lynch, 1954), and the benthic fauna (Soto, 1979, YanezArancibia and Sànchez-Gil, 1983).
The Campeche bank in the southern Gulf of Mexico, is responsible for more than half of
Mexico’s oil production and a third of the shrimp catches in Mexican waters. Therefore
since the onset of this decade (Botello and Castro, 1980) a multidisciplinary monitoring
program has been established on the continental shelf of the Campeche Bank.
This work is a study of the annual and seasonal changes in the bacteria community. It was
carried out using the concentrations of heterotrophic and oil degrading bacteria in the
water and in the sediment habitats. In additions, oil degrading bacteria, which were
isolated in March 1980, are characterized using numerical taxonomic methods.
633